Boston, MA — In the largest trial to date to assess cardiovascular outcomes for an important class of diabetes medications, researchers have found that dapagliflozin markedly reduced the risk of hospitalization for heart failure in a broad population of patients with diabetes. This benefit was seen across the study population, including in patients who did...
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Ready for a close-up: The science behind face massage rollers
Facial massaging using a roller can increase skin blood flow for more than ten minutes after the massage. It can also improve vasodilation — the widening of blood vessels, — in the long-term, according to a study by researchers in Japan. IMAGE: IMAGING USING LASER-SPECKLE FLOWGRAPHY REVEALED RED COLORS, INDICATING HIGHER SKIN BLOOD FLOW, IN...
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Virtual Reality Is Used in Clinical Practice
Dr. Brennan M. Spiegel and his research team at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center have been experimenting with virtual reality (VR) for years. I had a fruitful and very exciting correspondence with him about moments of immersion, virtual pharmacies or how to travel to Iceland without leaving your hospital bed. Read on! VR is an area...
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Recall of blood pressure drug expands again
The drug is being recalled because the active ingredient has tested positive for N-Nitrosodiethylamineor NDEA, a suspected human and animal carcinogen that is used in gasoline as a stabilizer for industry materials and as a lubricant additive, according to the National Institutes of Health. The ingredient was made by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Company Co. Ltd....
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AI can’t replace doctors. But it can make them better
A machine can collate environmental data, genetic data, and patient history way better than I can. Several years ago Vinod Khosla, the Silicon Valley investor, wrote a provocative article titled “Do We Need Doctors or Algorithms?” Khosla argued that doctors were no match for artificial intelligence. Doctors banter with patients, gather a few symptoms, hunt...
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Vaginal problems diminish quality of life but often go unreported
CLEVELAND, Ohio (November 14, 2018)–With symptoms such as dryness, burning, or itching of the vagina, vulvovaginal atrophy is estimated to affect up to 98% of postmenopausal women, many of whom will fail to report symptoms to their healthcare providers or seek help. A new survey demonstrates the negative effect of these symptoms on quality of...
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Mental Illness Body Tracker Accurately Diagnoses PTSD
Mental illness can be notoriously difficult to diagnose in many cases, since symptoms may be invisible to physicians and those that are can be misleading. Objective methods that don’t rely on a direct observation would help to improve diagnosis. Researchers at Draper, the famous engineering firm in Cambridge, Massachusetts, have developed a system consisting of...
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New guidelines for early detection and treatment of sarcopenia
Newcastle University experts are chairing a national session on new guidelines for the early detection and treatment of sarcopenia – a loss of muscle strength that affects many older people in the UK. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of older people live with the condition in the UK, and identification and treatment is...
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Joint pain and swelling — when symptoms masquerade as arthritis
Arthritis is a term commonly used to describe conditions giving rise to joint based symptoms. Arthritis takes on many forms, with osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis among the most common. Symptoms include pain, stiffness and swelling, with patients also frequently experiencing signs of inflammation or decreased range of motion. In severe cases arthritis causes a permanent...
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Half of older patients exposed to potentially inappropriate prescribing
Around half of older patients are exposed to potentially inappropriate prescribing, each year, and hospitalisation is independently associated with an increased risk, finds a study in Ireland published by The BMJ today. Inappropriate prescribing can include the intensification of existing drugs and the failure to stop or reduce doses of certain drugs after discharge from...